WASHINGTON, May 12 (Reuters) - U.S. Trade Representative Susan
Schwab will meet Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso Amorim in Rome to
discuss global trade talks, which negotiators hope to push toward a
conclusion in the next several weeks.
The officials from two of the Doha round's leading players will
hold talks in the Italian capital after Schwab attends a
U.S.-European trade meeting in Brussels on Tuesday, Schwab's office
said on Monday.
The meeting will center on the World Trade Organization talks,
according to Gretchen Hamel, a Schwab spokeswoman.
Trade officials are hoping to push past a long-standing impasse
on agriculture in the talks in order to clinch a deal before the end
of the year or by the time President George W. Bush leaves office.
Last week, Schwab said the next four to six weeks would be
critical, and pressed advanced developing countries such as Brazil
and India to make major concessions in opening their markets to
foreign. goods.
Schwab and Indian Trade Minister Kamal Nath discussed the round
last week in New York.
Agriculture has been the most troublesome issue in the Doha
talks, which have been moving in fits and starts since they began in
2001.
But farm trade is by no means the only obstacle to reaching a
deal in the talks, which also cover industrial trade, services, and
trade rules.
(Editing by Marguerita Choy)
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Keywords: USA TRADE/DOHA